‘Thank You Mr IPL’: Fans disheartened after Suresh Raina announces retirement from all formats – Firstcricket News, Firstpost

Suresh Raina, who has been a glittering name in Indian cricket, announced his retirement from all forms of the game on Tuesday. He wrote a heartfelt note on his Twitter handle thanking fans and the teams he played for during his illustrious career.

Raina’s Twitter post read, “It has been an absolute honour to represent my country & state UP. I would like to announce my retirement from all formats of Cricket. I would like to thank BCCI, Uttar Pradesh Cricket, Chennai Super Kings, Rajiv Shukla sir and all my fans for their support and unwavering faith in my abilities.”

The reports regarding Raina’s retirement were buzzing around for the last couple of days. Reports suggested that the southpaw had made up his mind to play different franchise tournaments around the globe.

Speaking in an interview with Dainik Jagran, ‘Mr IPL’ said that he would never feature in the Indian Premier League and any domestic tournament in the country. However, he revealed that he was also willing to continue cricket for two or three years more and would look to ply his trade in T20 leagues in South Africa, Sri Lanka and UAE.

“I already have my No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the Uttar Pradesh Cricket Association (UPCA), and I have also notified Jay Shah, the secretary of the BCCI, and Rajiv Shukla, the vice-president, about my decision,” the 35-year-old said.

A lot of fans, who love to watch Raina playing the beautiful drives to the off-side, have been left heartbroken after coming to know the news. Raina’s post has garnered more than 45,000 likes so far. Users expressed their gratitude to the former India cricketer for his immense contribution to the game. Some have also slammed Chennai Super Kings for not bidding for Raina in the previous season of IPL.

Here are some reactions:

Raina has been a loyal fellow of the Chennai Super Kings side. Though he was not picked up by any team in the IPL 2022 mega auction, he has been the main man behind CSK’s success on various occasions. Raina has appeared in 205 IPL matches and recorded a total of 5,528 runs at a batting average of 32.52. He has fetched as many as 39 half-centuries and a single century since his introduction to the competition in its very first season.

Notably, Suresh Raina bid adieu to international cricket on 15 August 2020, barely an hour after MS Dhoni announced his international retirement.